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‘Give justice to my daughter’ pleads father of dead York student

Liu Jianhui, father of York University student Qian Liu, who died after a struggle with an intruder, is expected to land in Toronto Wednesday, hoping for justice for his daughter.

Jianhui Liu, a research director and professor at the Party School of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China, was expected to come to Toronto after the mysterious death of his daughter, York University student Qian (Nicole) Liu, on April 15, 2011.

The heartbroken father of a York University student whose death police are now investigating as a homicide will land in Toronto Wednesday, seeking justice for his daughter.

Jianhui Liu told the TorontoStar Tuesday from the family home in Beijing that he and his wife were heartened by support extended to them by the circle of friends who knew 23-year-old Qian (Nicole) Liu.

“Many of her friends and classmates phoned to inquire about her circumstances,” said Liu, a research director and professor at The Party School of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China — the highest institution in charge of training Communist Party officials.

Qian Liu’s body was discovered by two friends and her landlord at 27 Aldwinckle Heights Saturday morning after they were alerted by Meng Xianchao, the victim’s boyfriend in China, who witnessed part of the struggle between the woman and an intruder by webcam the night before.

Meng, the girl’s boyfriend of seven years, made a heartfelt appeal on a Chinese social media website this week asking that people not follow Qian Liu’s death as some kind of passing diversion.

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“Don’t spread the information around lightly. Right now her family and friends are deeply saddened. Don’t allow others to view this as some sort of amusement, OK? That’s meaningless . . . Whether you knew her or not, please give her some peace. I’m thanking you here. I’m begging you,” Meng wrote.

A graduate of Beijing City College, Qian Liu came to Toronto last September to study English at York, part of a plan to further her university studies here.

Only an hour before she was attacked around 1 a.m. Saturday, the victim spoke via webcam to her mother, telling her how much she missed home.

“It was noon Beijing time,” her father told Ming Pao, a Chinese daily newspaper, “the child was chatting with her mom and she said she wanted to come home. But she hadn’t received any university admission (so she) couldn’t. She had sent applications to several universities and was waiting for a response.

“The child’s mom was very upset . . . She had just spoken with her daughter on webcam and she was murdered shortly after. You can only imagine how a mother feels.” added the father. “We just hope the police can locate the murderer as soon as possible — find the murderer and give justice to my daughter.”

On Tuesday, Toronto Police said they are investigating “a number of people” in Liu’s death, but warned media not to focus on the one “person of interest,” whose photo has circulated online in Chinese-language chat rooms.

“There has been misinformation that this man is in fact the intruder seen by the online witness,” said Det. Sgt. Frank Skubic. “I do not confirm this is a fact . . . We’re looking at a number of people who fall into that category.”

Police say they are still looking for a white male, 20 to 30 years old, 6-ft. tall with a muscular build and medium length brown hair. His hair was messy at the front and well-groomed at the back. He was wearing a blue crew neck T-shirt.

While homicide is leading the investigation into Liu’s death, police are still waiting for toxicology test results to determine the cause of death.

“We are investigating this as a homicide and with the due diligence that is required of a homicide investigation,” Skubic said. “We’re not going to sit on our hands and wait for those results to come in.”

Police for the first time Tuesday also publicly drew a link between an address on nearby Haynes Ave., where an intensive forensics examination has been taking place over the past few days.

Police confirmed that the victim lived there before moving to Aldwinckle Heights in January. Asked if the person of interest lived there or once lived with the victim, Skubic would not comment.

Police also released photos of Liu’s missing IBM ThinkPad laptop, her missing external webcam device for live-streaming and her yet-to-be-recovered Nokia Smartphone. A phone that was seized earlier by police turned out to be an inactive old phone.

Police had no firm evidence that Liu had been stalked by someone who shared a house with her, as a friend had posted in a Chinese-language chat room.

“She was asked to go out on dates. That kind of behaviour doesn’t constitute criminal stalking,” Det. Sgt. Skubic said.

The York Federation of Students says it is concerned about the safety of women following an attack near the campus early Saturday morning. “This year alone, we have seen York students raped, sexually assaulted and even killed on or around our campus,” said Vanessa Hunt, president of the federation, in a news release.

A 22-year-old woman who was offered a ride home from a downtown party was sexually assaulted in the Sentinel Rd. and Murray Ross Parkway area over the weekend, but police do not believe the incident is connected to the homicide.

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With files from Nicholas Keung

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